A Man Called Ove

There is something about Ove. At first sight, he is almost certainly the grumpiest man you will ever meet. He thinks himself surrounded by idiots - neighbours who can't reverse a trailer properly, joggers, shop assistants who talk in code, and the perpetrators of the vicious coup d'etat that ousted him as Chairman of the Residents' Association. He will persist in making his daily inspection rounds of the local streets. But isn't it rare, these days, to find such old-fashioned clarity of belief and deed? Such unswerving conviction about what the world should be, and a lifelong dedication to making it just so?.

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I think everything has been said - just adding my voice to the chorus..... I loved this so much! First it irritated me (as I'm a grouchy, stuck-in-time, old person too), then worried me that it would be a spirit-deadening, "realistic", story - and I would have to stop reading it --- which I just hate. It's also by a man - which I don't read too much anymore. A friend recommended it and I will, forever, bless her for that kindness. For me, this is one of the most heart-opening stories I have ever read. It has come to live in me now and I'm the better for it. Hope you'll give it a try - it's a gem.

This is a sweet story. Give it time if you are feeling like it's slow as I did until just past half way. I came to enjoy the characters and appreciate the way they intertwined in one another's lives. It is reminiscent of other books such as The Curious Charms of Arthur Pepper, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry or Major Pettigrew's Last stand, to give you an idea.

I suppose this would be called a comic novel. A lot of things happen that readers can laugh at. But humour relies on context and individual reaction, and so did my response to this book.
I started read it in preparation for a trip to Scandinavia. I thought that it would show everyday life in contemporary Sweden in an entertaining way, and for that it was good. Set among a group of neighbours in a modern suburb, it describes directly and inferentially a small community and the minor or major issues that come up. Immigration, queer kids, bureaucratic obstruction, new technology are set against an underlying story of love and death in a cold climate. It shows a modern Sweden as part of 20th century Euro-American culture, with a few specific Nordic quirks. It contains some passages of compassionate writing and empathy that are quite lovely, such as the poignant story of the relationship between Ove and his neighbour, expressed in the history of their car ownership.
But I didn’t like Fredrik Backman’s writing. Essentially, this is a story about a grumpy old guy with a heart of gold. It’s a sentimental cliché. It’s a well-done sentimental cliché with some modernizing touches, and I can see why it’s popular. But for me it seldom rises above the cliché.
And it is undermined by incidents that are over-done or that don’t ring true. The uniform white-shirted, heartless bureaucrats, for example, are cartoons. While it might be true that many employees providing government services are rule-bound and unfeeling, they are all human beings with individual interests and frustrations. It doesn’t make Ove’s story any more sympathetic to make them all automatons. And the story of the gay guy who comes to stay in Ove’s house because his father can’t deal with his homosexuality seems completely contrived, the kind of thing that someone would imagine when they don’t know any gay men’s coming out stories. Worse than contrived, it’s a plot device to bring a little more poignancy and humor into the story line. And then there are the cute kids who get through Ove’s grumpiness. And the stray cat that adopts Ove and lets him show his hidden warmth. Even, perhaps especially, his saintly wife. It’s all too much.
Backman also reduces the text to very simple, elemental declarative sentences or half sentences, presumably to represent Ove’s way of thinking, which is also very elemental. This is effective in making a reader see how Ove thinks, but after a few chapters, it’s trite.
What's critically annoying here is the mix of psychological insight presented in simple language offset by contrived sentimentality in an exaggerated style that is supposed to represent Ove's straightforward thinking. Perhaps if a few of the chapters were presented as short stories, this would be an interesting character study. But it is not enlightening when it turns him into a caricature or when character development relies on revelations that are little more than sentimental hooks.
Perhaps I’m being as narrow-minded and judgemental as Ove. Perhaps that’s why I didn’t much like the book. But for me, it’s the worst kind of popular sentimentality, and it is not saved by the few insightful passages.

I picked up the book after watching the movie in theatres (twice!) and realize now how well the movie screenplay and acting was done. In the past I have tried to read a book after having seen the movie but it didn't go well. In this case I was able to laugh all over again as I pictured what the characters were saying and doing. I would highly recommend both the book and the movie!

I picked up this book because of the many rave reviews I heard. My expectations are met plus beyond that. I love how Ove's character changes - even his rough ones seemed justified to me as the story shows how he trusted and then violated. But then true love happens and kindness and human compassion prevails. Such a common, regular and familiar scene- universal actually. I have to admit I shed tears while reading this book. And I see many, real "Oves" in my life. Thank God!

The character development in this book is beautiful, Ove's story deep and touching, and the intertwining of character relationships very well done. I cried so many times ready this book but not just of sadness; there are so many beautiful passages and heartwarming moments.

I must admit, it took me a little while to get into this book. I read the first third slowly and intermittently. I didn't really like like Ove much at first. This, however, exactly mirrors the usual effect the grumpy Ove has on people. I stuck with it, however, because the book had come so highly recommended and I was very glad I did. Yes, like many before me, I too fell under Ove's spell. It was a funny, entertaining book about grief and death. The book was charming, pleasant, yet still very bittersweet. I was sorry when it ended. Highly recommended.

Despite being totally predictable with unreal happy endings for all characters, I really enjoyed this book from its first to its last page. Could be just a relief from these discouraging times, but it was well written and gave me a lift.

Quotes

“And time is a curious thing. Most of us only live for the time that lies right ahead of us. A few days, weeks, years. One of the most painful moments in a person's life probably comes with the insight that an age has been reached when there is more to look back on than ahead. And when time no longer lies ahead of one, other things have to be lived for. memories, perhaps.”

“To love someone is like moving into a house," Sonja used to say. "At first you fall in love in everything new, you wonder every morning that this is one's own, as if they are afraid that someone will suddenly come tumbling through the door and say that there has been a serious mistake and that it simply was not meant to would live so fine. But as the years go by, the facade worn, the wood cracks here and there, and you start to love this house not so much for all the ways it is perfect in that for all the ways it is not. You become familiar with all its nooks and crannies. How to avoid that the key gets stuck in the lock if it is cold outside. Which floorboards have some give when you step on them, and exactly how to open the doors for them not to creak. That's it, all the little secrets that make it your home. "

“She just smiled, said that she loved books more than anything, and started telling him excitedly what each of the ones in her lap was about. And Ove realised that he wanted to hear her talking about the things she loved for the rest of his life.”